Four films, March 2025

on music and musings in movies

Mar 26, 2025

First things first, I would like to happily report that I finally watched A Complete Unknown1!

I’d been putting this off since February so it was no surprise that I’d tackle this immediately on my to-watch list this March. That being said, I did end up watching way more movies than expected this past month, and while it’s still the last week of March, I know I’ll be swamped binge watching Not Dead Yet (it’s cute) while unpacking and regulating my sleep schedule in a new timezone and probably starting Sunrise at the Reaping (the new Hunger Games book) in the next days.

Here’s four films I watched in March, with a little context on where I watched, why I wanted to watch, and who I watched it with. Opinions are my own; and there may be some spoilers!

A Complete Unknown | ★★★★

Where I watched: in my room in Manila, on my laptop, one quiet afternoon in March (I needed some me time)

Why I watched: Timmy, Bob Dylan, and I’m a huge fan of musician biopics (specific, I know)

Who I watched it with: by myself

What I think: First of all, shoutout to my good friend Michelle for letting me watch! Second, it was good. I didn’t know anything about Bob Dylan except for Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right as the end credits song of Mad Men’s season one finale:

Needless to say, I was impressed with Timmy’s performance and the story. The drive. The motivation. The desire to want to change things. The backdrop (I’m a big 60s fan)2. The songs! The chaos and beauty and everything in between.

I have to admit though, I fell asleep at one point, mostly because of jetlag (lol). I unfortunately cannot watch a movie longer than 120 minutes unless it’s in a cinema. That being said, I regret not catching this in theaters while I was in LA last Christmas.

Swing Girls | ★★★★

Where I watched: in my brother’s room (he has a projector and v cool setup)

Btw, it’s free to watch on YouTube:

Why I watched: I saw it on Fran’s photo diaries on Patreon and did a quick Google, convinced my brother to watch it, and that same night, we were locked in watching in his room after dinner (it’s become our tradition when I was home)

Who I watched it with: my brother

What I think: This was so fun! I have a soft spot for films that focus on coming of age storylines, and this unexpectedly hit the spot. I saw Letterboxd reviews that said this was like School of Rock3 in a way, or the calmer version of Whiplash (ha, I totally get that) but overall, I just enjoyed the pacing and how my brother and I would react as the scenes progress.

I’m also biased when music plays a key part in a film—that, to me, is an instant watch. NGL, this also inspired me to pick up my guitar again and want to practice playing this year (I’ve been rusty, I learned how to play when I was sixteen and have been on and off).

If you’re looking for a 90-minute film that’ll make you appreciate music (especially jazz) and the wonders of how it brings people together, add this to your list and thank me later.

Drive My Car | ★★★

Where I watched: my brother’s room

Why I watched: this was initially what we intended to watch, but decided on Swing Girls because of the film length. I had this on my list since 2022, and I knew I wanted to watch it at some point because it won Best International Film at the Oscars. Eventually, the day after my sister’s wedding, my brother and I were dead tired (and partly hungover) so we took the afternoon off and was like, okay maybe we are ready for a 3 hour film screening? (We weren’t, lol)

Who I watched it with: my brother, I need to mention that he’s N1 level4 in Japanese (more on this in another essay)

What I think: The pacing was so slow—which, usually is fine to me, but for some reason maybe I wasn’t as attached to the story as I hoped to be, so it felt dragging to some extent.

We had to cut the screening towards the 1.5h mark because my cousin Mark (I had to mention because lol coincidence?!) dropped by and we had a Monday jam session (this is relevant to the next film). The last half was screened downstairs while having dinner, which had more action going on, and I liked how it ended.

In true Japanese film fashion, I appreciated the film’s conversational nature. What stood out to me was the reminder that everyone is navigating their own struggles, regardless of how things appear from the outside. I also realized that driving is one of my favorite ways to get to know someone—the tight space, the in-between feeling of being in motion, and the shared experience of music or conversation in the car.

Begin Again | ★★★★.5

Where I watched: my brother’s room

Why I watched: while we were jamming (read above), my brother started singing Lost Stars (complete with Adam Levine’s backup vocals and all the woo-hoo-hoo) and I was surprised that he hadn’t watched Begin Again, one of my favorite movies! So I had to schedule this last screening before I flew back to Berlin.

Who I watched it with: my brother, and we invited my mom to watch with us (she enjoyed it a lot)

What I think: I love John Carney5’s movies, especially this and Sing Street. I love how he weaves together music and emotions and how it drives people to create. I love how the main characters don’t have a romantic connection—they had a connection that they both benefited from regardless, and it was beautiful. It was real, and heartfelt, and when they parted ways in the last few minutes of the film, I felt the fondness they both had for each other, having created beautiful music that healed both of them.

Adam Levine’s character was a douche, so I won’t get into details. What I did want to mention was the lore of the music industry (which has similar veins as publishing) and I appreciated how transparent it was mentioned in the film.

I also want to say I give this a very high rating because I love New York and I remember watching this for the very first time during my Southeast Asia backpacking trip (10ish years ago?!) in Singapore on a random evening as downtime from our trip. I didn’t have any idea of what New York was back then, but I did love this movie from there on out.

Every time I rewatch this film (probably once or twice a year) I always form new perspectives from it. But one thing always stays the same: the opening scene is my favorite of all time.

If there’s one thing I took away from my viewing history this month, it’s that, well, I love music in films. I mean, I love music in general, so that tracks. I wanted to mention that I rewatched Pride and Prejudice (2005) after 10 years on the plane last night, but I only wanted to highlight four films and stick to my rules lol. That was cute though!

And of course, who are we kidding here? I watched more than four films this March. You can check out my Letterboxd diary here.

As I’m finishing up typing this, I’m asking myself, why am I even broadcasting the films I watch every month on another platform online? Good question.

I’m coworking at a friend’s place and borrowing my other friend’s desk (hi, Glo!)

I’m supposed to be listing down all the tasks I need to get done as a new month comes—mostly organizing workshop schedules, e-mails, Patreon deadlines, figuring out visa applications, apartment hunting, etc…(you’d think my bureaucracy stuff is over, but it is, unfortunately not)

But I’ve been holding space for sanity projects like this. Projects that let me create for the sake of creating, without an end goal. Projects that make me feel alive without having an expectation tied to the end. I just enjoy putting these together for me, because so much of what I do is for everyone else, and I needed an outlet to just share my love for films.

So if you’ve been reading my Substack for a while now (or maybe for the first time, hi!), thanks for being here. This keeps me sane, in spite of all the craziness that goes in my work and life.

What films did you watch this March?

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